THE CUBA REVIEW 



Postal rates between Cuba 

 Neza and Spain, the rate for or- 



Postal dinary mail being now five 

 Rates cents, may be reduced as 



the result of the action 

 taken by the president on January 21st, 

 authorizing the director of posts and tele- 

 graphs to make arrangements to enter into 

 postal treaties tending to reduce the postal 

 rates. 



If an agreement is effected, the rate will 

 probably be made three cents. 



Secretary of State JManuel 

 To Abandon Sanguily made on January 

 Bahia 21st the first official state- 



Honda ment concerning the pro- 

 posed plans of the United 

 States relative to lands granted b}' Cuba to 

 the United States for naval bases. The fact 

 that the United States wants to exchange 

 Bahia Honda for an extra area about the 

 Caimanera station, w-as admitted. 



iVothing, however, had been done as yet 

 regarding the matter. Secretary Sanguily 

 said that negotiations were being conducted 

 satisfactorily, and that the Cuban people 

 will be glad to grant what the United 

 States wants in exchange for the relin- 

 quishment of the Bahia Honda holdings, 

 which have not been brought into use. 



While there has been much 

 Presidential talk about the selection of 

 Succession General Mario iMenocal as 

 Talk the conservative standard- 



bearer in the next national 

 elections, the general refrained from mak- 

 ing any announcement. Recently, however, 

 he developed some interest in the election 

 discussion and called Senor Aurelio Hevia 

 to Chaparra to inform him of the political 

 situation and the wishes of the Conserva- 

 tive Party. Senor Hevia is secretary of the 

 conservative national committee. 



The St. Lazarus Hospital, 

 Nezv an old institution for the 



Home confinement of lepers. 



For Lepers which has stood for years 

 on what was formerly an 

 out-of-the-way site, but which is now^ the 

 gateway of the aristocratic suburb of Ha- 

 vana, will finally be removed to grounds 

 near the village of San Francisco de Paula, 

 according to the statements made by Dr. 

 Eduardo Borrell, a member of the board 

 of trustees in charge of that institution. 



It was at first contemplated to remove 

 the hospital tp the handsome palace built 

 by Mr. Horace Rubens, in Mariel, and the 

 state even advanced the money, guaranteed 

 by a mortgage on the building, for the ac- 

 quisition of that beautiful structure; but 

 the lack of adequate communications made 

 this site undesirable. 



On the occasion of the sec- 

 Is A ot ond anniversary of the re- 

 a establishment of the repub- 



Candidatc lie, on January 2Sth, Presi- 

 dent Gomez issued a mani- 

 festo to the people, commending the im- 

 provements effected during his administra- 

 tion. 



He said it was the government's purpose 

 to complete commercial treaties with for- 

 eign countries, tending to widen the mar- 

 kets for the ever-increasing Cuban produc- 

 tions. In the making of such treaties the 

 government will always take into consid- 

 eration the agreements made with the 

 United States. 



President Gomez closed his proclamation 

 with the important announcement that he 

 would not be a candidate for another term. 



On January 21st, the Ha- 



The vana city council restored 



Jai Alai the Jai Alai concession, a 



Concession proceeding which caused 

 much surprise. Under the 

 terms of the municipal resolution Sr. :\Ia- 

 nuel Garin, who represents a syndicate 

 which has been seeking the concession, se- 

 cures It for a period of ten years, precisely 

 as It was originally granted by General 

 Wood, with all betting privileges, the citv 

 to receive 30 per cent of the admission 

 fees. 



_ Acting Mayor Aspiazo of Havana officiat- 

 mg in the absence of Mayor Cardenas, who 

 Avas severely injured in an automobile ac- 

 cident, vetoed the concession on Tanuarv 

 26th. 



He claimed the grant was in violation 

 of certain articles of the law which makes 

 previous public advertising essential, and 

 limits the value of a concession to $3,000 

 when the Jai Alai grant is worth much 

 more. 



As illustrating the inherent 

 Gambling tendency of the Cubans to 

 on gamble on anything and ev- 



Collections erything, the following or- 

 der of the secretary of the 

 treasury is interesting : 



The customs house is henceforth not to- 

 inform the press of the actual amount of 

 money collected daily, because the practice 

 facilitates gambling. 



For instance, A bets one dollar on 56, 

 and the actual amount collected by the cus- 

 toms house during the day being $98,496.56, 

 A accordingly wins, and thus the gambling 

 continues each day. 



On January 16th Senor Carrera Justiz, 

 Cuban minister to Washington, was trans- 

 ferred to Holland, and Seiior Antonio 

 ]Martin Rivero was appointed in his stead. 



